Chapter 8: Chapter. 8 Knox

“That sounds like a doom and gloom prophecy.” Diana nodded mockingly. “Cults always have a doomsday prophecy. Is that one yours? Are you about to tell me that there’s a spell you can cast to protect everyone from this prophecy, but it requires expensive ingredients? Because if so, I’m a waitress in a diner. I am not the bank account to tap here-”

“Diana.” Anna chided her, and Diana stuck her tongue onto her cheek at the sheer cheek of a 16 year old telling her off. “One, our family is very wealthy, so you don’t need to worry about being a diner waitress anymore. This isn’t about money. It never was and it will never be about money. Two? It isn’t so much a prophecy, but history waiting to repeat itself. If the wards fail, our old enemies will return in force. They are already trying.” Anna sighed with worry to one side. “Mother…did her best, but after she passed away the wards started to fail.”

Diana exhaled like she’d been kicked in the gut.

“…she’s…dead?” Anna closed her eyes and nodded sadly. “…when?”

“Two years ago.” Anna looked to Diana significantly. “I was 14, one year into my true magic, and we were attacked. We don’t know how? But the dark ones sent a single agent through the wards.” She licked her lips and her hazel eyes started to water. “They came for me. To…end the Couper line. Isabella died protecting me. She took a hex that was meant for me.” She inhaled and exhaled deeply, then turned and smiled up at something on the other side of Diana. “I’m alright. No, no she needs to know.” Anna cleared her throat and nodded to Diana. “If they had succeeded in killing me, our mother being past the age of having my more children and the last Couper, the line would have ended when she did. Naturally or otherwise. So instead she cast a transference spell on me and took the hex. She died…but not right away.” Anna raised a hand and then dropped it back onto the other one on her lap.

Diana was numb.

After all these years of wondering, and her mother had died 2 years ago. She was gone. The kind loving (albeit delusional) mother from her memories was gone. “Over 3 days she fought to hold on long enough to see to her affairs. To hand her grimoire and position over to me. You were long gone, and it had been accepted for a long time that I was the Couper heir in your absence. I came from two powerful bloodlines, and I’ve been casting since I was 4.” Diana felt a jealous sting. As a child she had always wanted to have magic. At the time she’d been convinced it was real. She knew it wasn’t, but there was still a childish part of her that resented how Anna seemed to have stepped into her life and thrived in it.

She looked like Isabella. She had ‘power’ like Isabella. Andhere she was telling Diana that she now followed in her footsteps? She couldbelieve that the cult were delighted that Anna stepped up to fill her shoes.“But…something isn’t right.” Anna looked anxious for the first time. “I’m a Couper, I successfully took mother’s place as Coven mother, but the wards…they have continued to fail. Every day since mother passed they have gotten weaker and weaker. The dark ones send more and more agents to attack us and try to bring the wards down. I am powerful, yes, but I’m a savant healer. Not a battle-witch like mother was. The Coven…there is division in the ranks. Some still believe I am the rightful heir. Others question if I am suitable due to my supportive magical talents. I don’t command lighting or fire.”

You don’t command anything buttercup. Diana raised a brow, and wondered what special effects they were using to trick her into thinking hands were holding her down. Is there such a thing as invisible straps? Or am I still drugged and therefore still suggestible? “I am a Couper, and therefore, the wards should be fortified. But instead they crumble. That’s why I had to bring you home Diana.” She returned her attention to the blonde then.

“…I don’t see-”

“You’re a Couper too.” Anna smiled and reached out to hold one of Diana’s hands affectionately, but Diana jerked away instinctively. “…mother made me promise not to look for you when you left…she sent you away to protect you, but I wanted to find you. I asked and asked…but she forbade me. A Couper must always reside in Salem, so once she died, I could not come after you. Even when I realised that having more Couper blood here had to be the way to strengthen the wards.” Anna tucked her hair behind one of her ears and shrugged. “I thought there was no way to bring you here, until Elaina suggested spirit walking.”

“…what?” Diana squinted at her. She to admit the level of intricacy of this girl's dellusion was kind of impressive. Nuttier than a fruit cake.

“Walking one’s spirit with one’s spirit guardian through their plane of existence. It’s a useful tool for spying on others, but usually it doesn’t allow you to interact with the subject.” Anna bubbled with excitement and nodded over at the invisible spirit again. “Knox was the one who suggested using an old communication spell within the spirit walking spell. Spirit guardians can naturally exist in both planes of existence at the same time, and appear to their keeper. We can see our spirit guardians. We can also make our spirit guardians visible for a short period of time to others if we wish.” Anna reached over to stroke…something…and giggled. “It was Knox who suggested having the spirit guardian do this in reverse to make their keeper travel with them and appear visible to others instead. Very clever.”

“Wow, that’s one hell of a story.” Diana put her hands up and nodded with her eyes wide open. “A story I’ve now listened too. You said you’d let me up once I heard it. I have. So now I-”

“You are a Couper and therefore in terrible danger Diana.” Anna held her lacy gloved hands into fists on her chiffon clad lap. “The dark ones killed our mother. They have tried to kill me repeatedly since, and once they learn you are back, you will also be in danger.”

“Then let me get the hell out of here!” Diana demanded. “I’m only here because you sent that mouthy redhead after me.”

“I had to have you brought home. I’m the Coven mother, and I have all of Salem to protect. Thousands of lives depend on my ability to maintain the wards and keep the dark ones out. So many have already died, and it’s only been 2 years.” Anna’s anger fizzled back to sadness. “I needed you to come home and help me. Two Coupers have to be better thanone. Together we will fix the wards and protect Salem.”

“Look, I’m sorry Ma’s dead, I am, but I’m not being drawn back into this madness. It took years of therapy to bring me out of thedelusion about magic and witches, and I still have nightmares about my time here. I’m getting a bus and getting back to my normal safe life.”

“No you’re not.” Anna challenged and slowly got off the bed. She stormed over to the dresser table opposite her and angrily swiped something up to wave at her. “Do you remember what this is?” Diana leaned forward on the bed and regarded what looked like a little straw doll. “It’s aneffigy. Also known as a fetish. I took some of your hair as you slept and I put it inside the doll. If you try and leave, or you manage to leave, I can now pull you right back.”

“No you can’t.” Diana sniggered. “You may think you can little girl, because you were raised your whole life by crazy people-”

“Our mother was not crazy.” Anna hissed. “She loved us both, and she especially loved you. I don’t know why she had to send you away, but she always maintained it was to keep you safe. She loved you so much she sent you away, but not me. You can say whatever you want about the coven or me, but you don’t get to bad mouth our mother. That woman was love personified, and she died to save me. She gave her life to save Salem. She was not crazy.”

“Says the crazy person waving a straw doll with some of my stolen hair inside?” Diana said sarcastically and rolled her brown eyes. “Look, I need to pee? So if you could signal for your sidekick to loosen the straps so I can go to the bathroom? That would be great.”

“My side kick?” Anna stalked over to stand beside the bed and glared down at Diana. “Would you like to meet my ‘side kick’. No Knox." galred across the bed for a moment. "I think she needs to see to believe.” She chided thin air, and Diana looked up and prayed for strength. “Yani clearly wasn’t enough to convince her.”

“That lady had a spectacular costume on, but no, she didn’t convince me.” Diana grumbled and decided to just feel for the straps and try and free herself. She looked down, her hands about to touch her legs…